There have been many types of animal beds for supporting an animal in a comfortable manner. For example, reference may be made to the following U.S. Pat. Nos. U.S. Pat. No. 3,902,456; and 5,002,014.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,902,456, which is incorporated by reference as if fully set forth herein, describes a pet pillow having a doughnut shaped side wall portion defining an interior recess. The side wall portion is constructed from a fur-like synthetic material and is filled with a polyester fiber filling. A disc shaped bottom pad, which is also filled with the polyester fiber filling, extends across the bottom of the recess to provide additional cushioning for the animal.
In use, the animal rests within the recess. The polyester fiber filling within the side wall portion and the bottom pad supports the animal above the ground. Although such a pet pillow may permit the animal to rest comfortably, the pillow tends to accumulate small insects such as fleas and ticks. These small insects cause a great deal of discomfort to be inflicted on the animal, and can be easily transferred from the pillow to the animal while the animal is resting on the pillow.
To alleviate the problems associated with the accumulation of the small insects on the pillow, yet still provide a comfortable sleeping surface for the animal, an animal mattress which inhibits the accumulation of the small insects was developed. U.S. Pat. No. 5,002,014, which is incorporated by reference as if fully set forth herein, describes such an animal mattress.
The animal mattress includes an outer casing made of a woven, mesh fabric coated with a polyvinyl chloride material. A cushioning material composed of a plurality of small polystyrene beads fills the interior of the outer casing. The polystyrene beads flow within the casing under the weight of the animal to conform to the body of the animal, thereby enabling the animal to be supported without uncomfortable pressure points.
As the animal mattress is made entirely from inorganic materials, the small insects are deprived of nourishing substances that would otherwise accumulate on the mattress. Without the nourishing substances, the population of the small insects in the mattress could be reduced.
While such an animal mattress may reduce the number of small insects that can survive within the mattress, the mattress does not address the transference of the small insects from the mattress back to the animal. In this regard, the animal rests directly on the mattress, causing the beads to flow within the mattress. The beads are dispersed within the mattress to enable the mattress to closely conform to the shape of the animal. As a result, the animal rests in close proximity to the beads where the small insects tend to congregate. Thus, the insects can easily move from the beads to the resting animal.
Therefore, it would be highly desirable to have a new and improved animal bed which provides a comfortable and supportive resting platform for the animal, which prevents small insects within the bed from relocating to the animal, and which can be easily used. Such an animal bed should be lightweight, easy to assemble, and relatively inexpensive to manufacture.